Sanity Restored?

Here’s your sign

A few signs of sanity seen at Jon Stewart’s Rally to Restore Sanity Oct 30, 2010.

The Robots are Coming

I have been privileged to receive a pre-publication draft of The Robots are Coming from the author. This has nothing to do with any aptitude for literary review or interest or fear of robots on my part. Rather the author is my oldest friend. This is therefore not an unbiased review. The author will show up at my doorstep with beverages and conversation more often if this book sells well.

And since our friendship has always been built on friendly argumentative exchange, I won’t try to suggest that this book is without fault or that I fully embrace its conclusions. There were a few spots where the argument sounded too much like Glenn Beck for my taste though I didn’t mind the occasional political jab.

The robots are coming Actually, we all know that they are already here. We know about the ones that man the auto assembly lines and we know about the ones the police use to probe and destroy shopping bags left behind by careless tourists. We also know about armed and unmanned drones flying over Pakistan providing not so silent security for wedding parties and such.

And we know about endless loop, mind numbing, talking software that substitutes for customer ‘Service’. The robots are here alright. We built them to do useful or profitable things for us and we tolerate them because we like the convenience it brings (or we really are desperate to get through to customer service).

We all also know about the internet and the growing power that is Google. We know about 2001 a Space Odyssey , The Matrix and The Terminator films and we know that we are not ‘there’ yet. At least we think so. This book shows that we’re a lot closer than you think. The author provides a well-documented look at exactly where robot technology is at today, how quickly it has gotten there and how few the steps are and how quickly they might occur that will send us hurtling willingly into the matrix.

The author warns in bold type from the first page of the introduction that when the robots come for you “your neighbors will help it happen” I’m one of the unwitting neighbors; happy to turn over to iTunes and the cloud information about my complete music collection (and likely whether it was obtained legally). Happy to allow their software to pick the music I listen to in exchange for the pleasure of hearing my music in novel and interesting sequence and the convenience of not having to sort through 100’s of CDs to do it. I don’t mind giving Pandora Radio my thumbs up or down clicks as they learn my taste in music. I like the end result. Radio that reads my mind (and yes I do occasionally succumb to targeted advertising and buy new music). Without the cloud I would have never heard Lucinda Williams sing Dylan’s Positively Fourth Street.

And I can’t neglect mention of the irony of how utterly indispensible Google and the cloud were in producing a book warning of its imminent threat. Or the role that a company named after a river in South America might play if it is to be successful.

This 20 minute TED Talk video demonstrates why you should read this book.

Quoting the author of The Robots are Coming:

“In this powerful talk, the world‘s foremost robot expert shows how the widespread use of robots in war is changing the realities of combat. He shows us scenarios straight out of science fiction -- that are no longer at all fictitious.”

Georgia O'Keeffe Hides in My New Camera

Orange Poppy in Morning Sun

I seem to have found the spirit of Georgia O'Keeffe peeking out from my new camera. You hardly notice she's there at all in the full frame image.

Check out some of Ms O'keeffe's flowers. Visit the Georgia O'Keeffe Museum.

The ghost of Georgia O'Keeffe was hiding among the Iris too.

Blue Iris

Compare to Georgia O’Keeffe’s Blue Flower, 1918 which can be seen HERE, HERE or HERE.

1962 Hagerstown Bi-Centennial Tokens

Souvenir Money

Hagerstown Bi-Centennial – Antietam South Mountain Centennial

Clara Barton, Angel of the Battle Field Founder of the American Red Cross

Historic Dunker Church, Battle of Antietam Sept 17, 1862

Gathland Civil War Correspondents Memorial Frederick County Md.

Good for 50 cents in trade at any cooperating business or redeemable at any Washington or Frederick County Maryland Bank on or before 2:00 P.M. April 5, 1962

These are soon to be lost to the eBay auctioneer. Thought they deserved a spot in the virtual scrapbook first. Click on the image tovisit the Flickr PhotoPage where you can see a higher resolution image.

High Water on the Potomac River

March 14, 2010

These pictures were taken at Dam #5. I have posted photos taken yesterday afternoon along the Potomac River and C & O Canal in a Flickr PhotoSet. Pictures are from Taylor's Landing, Conononheague Aqueduct and Dam No. 5.

You can see the full photoset here.

Note: Clicking on the photos will take you to their Flickr PhotoPage where you can see the full size images. Check them out

Old Silver Certificates

Money may not have gone farther back then but it did cover more area.

The top bill, a series 1899 Black Eagle Dollar is signed by John Burke Treasurer of the US and Houston B. Teehee , Register of the Treasury. This dates the bill between March 1915 and Nov 1919. It’s the dollar in use on the day of my mother’s birth and through World War I. To collectors this bill is known as a Friedberg Catalog # 233.

The lower bill is a 1923 series Silver Certificate signed by Frank White and Harley V. Speelman They signed bills through Nov 1927. This bill is Friedberg #237.

These and a few similar bills are from my mother’s estate. Most will soon be lost to the auctioneer at eBay.


You can see all the bills in more detail in a PhotoSet on my Flickr Photo Sharing site. Just click on the pictures above or to the left to check them out. Or follow this link

Note the links to name/date range above are to ronscurrency.com. That site is my source for dating the bills.

Thanks and kudus to Philip Driver at Philipdrivercurrency.com His site and friendly correspondence has been very helpful in learning the history and value of these bills. Check out his site if you would like to see or purchase rare and high quality similar old silver certificates.

While searching for info about my mother's bills I found two very good sites with well written currency grading definitions and guidelines.

The Currency Grading Tutorial found at Heritage Auction Galleries's site is an excelent reference. RonsCurrency.com's grading page is also very good.

The Cracked Quarter

This 1957 George Washington silver quarter is cracked. Check it out. Click on any of the pictures to see an enlarged detail view of the crack.


I found this quarter among change gathered on my paper route at age 13 or 14. It was already well circulated and worn but the crack seemed unusual. I set the quarter aside with a small coin collection. It’s one of the few things that survive from that collection.


I have always been intrigued by that crack. A digital camera with a macro setting and a little bit of software and now you can see why.


How can you crack a quarter after it is struck without bending it all out of shape and leaving tool marks? I don’t think you can. I think this quarter was cracked before it was struck. The silver blank that became this quarter was cracked before the die was struck. It should have never left the mint in Philadelphia.


You can see more pictures of this quarter on my Flickr photo sharing site. Click on the pic to check them out.